Sometimes it rains all day and heavy clouds block out the sun. On other days there’s a clear blue sky and we enjoy the sun’s warmth. Most of us are influenced by the weather, which can affect our mood on the day. During the autumn and winter, our mood can be affected by the lower levels of sunlight. With less light, the body produces more melatonin, the hormone that helps us sleep, and lower levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which affects mood. When the sun shines, people seem noticeably happier and friendlier. This is backed up by psychological research, which shows a strong link between mood and weather.
The moods we experience are like the weather. They can sometimes hang around for days, and at other times change quickly. Moods last longer than emotions, which are specific and relatively short-lived. Moods can be seen as part of the general background, often unconscious, feeling tone of experience. Moods can be positive or negative and we speak of being in a good or bad mood. Moods include feelings, physical sensations, posture, facial expressions, and associated thoughts. They’re also the basis for how we react to whatever arises in our experience. When we’re in a positive mood we’re more likely to respond optimistically to a setback, than if our mood is low. Moods are also general habit patterns that we’ve carried around with us for many years, which can set the background of how we feel and react to the world around us.
Negative moods limit access to internal resources and have a direct impact on our own happiness and well-being, as well as on other people. When we’re not aware of our mood, it can define and limit who we are. So, developing a better understanding and recognition of moods and learning how to work skilfully with them can make a big difference to how we respond to other people and events in the world.
There’s useful research on self-care activities that can help improve our mood. These include making sure we get a good night’s sleep, regular exercise, and eating fresh fruit and vegetables, which helps us to become calmer, happier, and more energised. Also, if we’re stuck in a negative or low mood, there’s good research that putting a smile on our face can change our mood, as the muscles stimulate happier neural connections, as well as positive social feedback.
You can also use mindfulness to work skilfully with negative moods by:
- Becoming aware of and noticing your prevailing mood
- Acknowledging and exploring the mood with interest and curiosity, kindness, and self-compassion:
- Is the feeling tone pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral?
- Where does the mood resonate in your body?
- Becoming aware of your body posture and facial expressions
- Noticing any negative attitudes and beliefs (for instance, “Nothing ever works out for me”, or “I don’t deserve to be happy”)
- Seeing if you can name and describe the mood, for instance feeling sad, frustrated, grumpy, restless, anxious, or disappointed.
- Asking yourself:
- Is this a familiar old habit pattern?
- Does this mood serve me and others?
- Knowing that the mood is not who you are by creating a bit of separation between the mood and who you are as the observer. Moods don’t last forever; like many things, they come and go.
- Making a mental note of any insights and learning you discovered when exploring and observing the mood.
If moods are the general background feeling tone of our experience, then we’re often in mood, whether this is positive, negative, or neutral. Ironically, we often have blind spots for our own moods, which are more obvious to the people around us, than to ourselves. Being more aware of and working skilfully with our negative moods allows us to change what may be a habit of a lifetime. So, when you next find yourself in a negative mood, see the mood as a useful learning opportunity to explore what you’re experiencing, which can make a significant difference to your happiness and well-being, as well as those around you.
Suggested weekly practice
- Set the intention to notice your moods during the week. Maybe note these in a mood tracker app to spot patterns in what triggered the mood and what helped it dissolve.
- See if you can notice and become more sensitive to the moods of others, using kindness and compassion.
- If you find yourself in a negative mood, embrace how you feel with openness, kindness, and curiosity and explore what you can do to lighten it.
Guidance
Find somewhere undisturbed and sit in a comfortable, dignified and upright posture, where you can remain alert and aware. There are two guided practices for this session. You can close your eyes, or lower your gaze while the meditations play.
- Play the first settling practice, then read through the session content, which you can print off if that helps.
- Then play the second practice to explore and experience working with, either the mood you’re already in, or a recent mood, with interest, curiosity, and kindness.
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